Kevin’s letter about Redeemer going to two services starting August 18, 2024

Hey everybody,

Thank you to all of you who filled out the survey about whether or not we should move to two services and also those who we have heard from outside of the survey. It is important to us that we understand where people are coming from and what their opinions are about this issue.

We learned from the survey that almost everyone was feeling the same tension that we are feeling as an elder team. We want to make room for people to hear the gospel and be a part of what God might be doing at Redeemer Church. But we also don’t like the idea of dividing the Worship Service. So this was a difficult decision for us to make.

After much prayer and discussion we think it would be best if we added a second service that will coincide with the MSU fall and spring semesters. We will add a second service starting on Sunday August 18th which will last until November 24th.

We do not pretend that this is a perfect solution. There are many unknowns still. We would ask 3 things of our members and regular attendees. First, will you commit to praying for the hundreds of college students who are coming to worship and hear the preaching of the Word. We have no idea what God is doing in the hearts of these precious people at this time. Maybe the hospitality of Redeemer is an important step in their faith. Second, will you be patient with us as leaders as we try some new things. And third, will you help make this possible through your thoughtful ideas and faithful service to one another.

We have wrestled with how to best add a second service and there are pros and cons no matter how we go about it. We also had to consider the strain this would put on our childcare workers and volunteers. 

After considering our options we came to the conclusion that our best option would be to back everything up 30 minutes and add a second service. In other words, Sunday School will begin at 9:00 (instead of 9:30), the first Worship Service will begin at 10:00 (instead of 10:30), and the second Worship Service will begin at 11:30.

We were hoping to have childcare for the second Worship Service, but we decided that, at least for now, it was better if we did not include childcare for the second service. 

I should also say that this is not written in stone. We will try this for a few months and then evaluate it at the end of the year.

Below are some answers to questions that you might have.

Why not have the first Worship Service before Sunday School?

We thought that adding the second service after the first service allowed for less whiplash and gave us greater balance in regards to attendance for both services. What we mean by balance is that if we had a Worship Service that began at 9 (or earlier) and another around 11 then the first service might not be very well attended and we could potentially run into the same space issue with the second service. We also did not think we were able to provide childcare for two services and that set up would have more likely required childcare for both services.

What about parking?

If our primary goal was to improve parking then we might have put Sunday School between the two Worship Services. But while parking matters, it was not the most important factor. Also, we have noticed that 30 minutes after the Worship Service it seems that more than half of the cars have left the parking lot. So the parking will at least be improved for the 10:00 service and the 11:30 service.

Why will there not be childcare at the second service?

We had hoped to provide in the second service everything we provide in the first service. But we think that would have put a strain on those organizing childcare and those volunteering in childcare while we are already experiencing a bit of a shortage in childcare volunteers. Perhaps in the future, if there are more children in the second service and more volunteers, then we will add childcare to the second service.

It seems that having the second service 90 minutes after Sunday School will not allow those attending the second service to attend Sunday School. Why then are we doing that?

We have seen that the number of people who attend Sunday School is not even close to the number of people who attend the Worship Service. We probably only have one third or one fourth of the people in Sunday School that we have in the Worship Service. Therefore, those who do attend Sunday School will likely just attend the first service.

What is the long term plan?

We would like to only have only one Worship Service so that we can all be together. We hope to include funds in this year’s upcoming budget to hire a firm to design a master plan for a building that could not only be more accommodating to our Worship Service, but also to better serve our children along with other activities that take place at Redeemer Church.

Let's pray that God would continue to work among us and through us!

Kevin on behalf of the Elder Team